


X-MEN, Episode 100: Shaw Mansion

by bicroft



Category: X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Charles Xavier has a Ph.D in Adorable, Erik has Issues, Ghost Hunters, Haunted Houses, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-24
Updated: 2015-12-24
Packaged: 2018-05-08 20:04:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5511305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bicroft/pseuds/bicroft
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"'I would like to preface this episode with: ‘Charles, I told you this was a bad idea.’' Erik said from behind the camera. Charles didn’t give an obvious reaction, though his left eye did twitch a bit; this would not be the first episode that opened that way."</p><p>The X-Men are a group of ghost hunters, well known on the internet for their web series chronicling their adventures. For their hundredth episode, they've come to Shaw Mansion- and walked away with more than they'd thought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	X-MEN, Episode 100: Shaw Mansion

**Author's Note:**

> the working title for this was "spooperween" or "the one where the team shamelessly ships cherik"
> 
> the Absolute Most Kudos award goes to ladyofrosefire for betaing and cheerleading for me- seriously, Lily, you're the realest MVP. <3

“I would like to preface this episode with: ‘Charles, I told you this was a bad idea.’” Erik said from behind the camera. Charles didn’t give an obvious reaction, though his left eye did twitch a bit; this would not be the first episode that opened that way.

 

“Thank you for the vote of confidence once again, Erik.” He replied amicably. “ _I_ would like to start the episode by welcoming our viewers, and giving the overview of our house tonight.”

 

“There isn’t much of an overview to give.” Raven said, coming up beside him. Though the night was muggy and the air oppressive, she didn’t look rumpled at all, only vaguely annoyed that she was being dragged out there in the first place. “It’s another spooky, condemned mansion in the middle of nowhere.”

 

“And she does mean the middle of nowhere, dear viewers.” Sean cut in, coming up on Charles’ other side, gum popping. “’Cause the last town was twenty miles back, and there ain’t been a gas station or field in sight since.”

 

“Right,” Charles sighed. The twitch in his eye was more obvious now, and he was once again starting to wonder why he hadn’t just gone ahead and kept with biology in university. Parapsychology, as much as he loved it and the mystery of it, didn’t seem to be getting him much farther than the back of Darwin’s van. “Both of you are, in your own ways, correct. It _is_ a mansion, it _is_ in the middle of nowhere, and it is, technically, condemned.”

 

“And very spooky!” Alex put in. Charles smiled at him graciously; there was a reason that, generally, Alex was his favorite of the crew, next to Darwin. Between the two of them, there was always plenty of usable footage, though Erik ended up having to edit hours’ worth of them kissing off of _his_ camera. The rest of Erik’s footage was generally made up of Charles and his various mishaps, and almost never any of their actual discoveries, which irritated Charles to no end.

 

“And very spooky.” he echoed before clearing his throat and continuing. “The Shaw Mansion has been empty for approximately two decades now, though it was first inhabited by Dr. Sebastian Shaw, who history has marked down as one of the maddest of mad scientists.”

 

“Shaw’s legacy comes from an alleged history of human experimentation,” Darwin supplied. “And an obsession with the occult.”

 

Charles nodded. “Quite right, quite right. On top of this, it was a very well known fact that Shaw experimented on animals, and then loosed the Frankenstein’s monster-esque beasts on the grounds of his estate to keep away curious visitors and competitors alike. The home has been briefly owned by several parties since then, but all of them suffered accidents or disappeared from this house not longer after moving in. It was officially condemned ten years ago, after it came into the ownership of the state and was found to be in extreme disrepair.”

 

“So, in conclusion, we’re going to go poke the real-life equivalent of Dr. Frankenstein and hope he doesn’t kill us.” Hank said, standing from where he’d been fiddling with their equipment.

 

“Absolutely.” Charles chirped. Erik sighed through his nose, tucking his camera under his arm.

 

“For once, I would like us to pick a normal spot to do this.” he said. “Why can’t we investigate Blackbeard, or Salem? Why are normal ghosts too _boring_ for you and your massive intellect?”

 

“Complaining won’t shoot the episode, my friend.”  Charles said, clapping him on the back. Erik just sighed again, and shrugged.

 

“Right, normal rules apply, then: if you’ve seen it in a Scooby Doo episode, don’t do it.” The group nodded.

 

“And, with that, the one hundredth episode of X-Men is on!” Sean whooped. Everyone grinned. Whatever the found or didn’t find tonight, at least it would probably be fun.

  

* * *

The first supernatural hallmark of the evening occurred not even a minute after they got through the door. That in an of itself was an ordeal that most likely wouldn’t make its way into the final cut; Alex had had to spend a good ten minutes picking the rusted lock on the door, and Charles liked to make sure that there was no incidence of breaking and entering on tapes to be picked over later, in case they ever pissed off the wrong people.

 

“And, welcome to--” he began, preparing himself to discuss the air and EMF readings. Before he could, however, the door Darwin was starting to close snapped from his hand and slammed shut, echoing across the parlor.

 

“There’s tally number one on the ‘spooky shit’ counter for this house.” Sean said, scooting as far from the door as he could manage without leaving the group. “Mark it, Raven.”

 

“Marked.” Raven said, the small notepad from her pocket and making a tick on it in the blue pen she carried for such occasions. “Off to a great start.”

 

“Shut up.” Erik huffed. “Darwin, open it; it was probably the wind.”

 

“And that’s the first mark on the ‘Erik says shit from horror movies’ counter.” Raven deadpanned. “Sean, mark it.”

 

“Marked.” Sean said, going through the same process Raven had.

 

“Shut _up!_ ” Erik hissed again.

 

Darwin jiggled the doorknob, and then pulled against it. “It’s not budging.” he said, brow furrowed as he picked his camera back up.

 

“Excellent!” Charles said, earning him a look from Erik, which he ignored. “That gives us until we can find a new exit to look around. Shall we?”

 

“The readings here are… weird.” Hank said, looking puzzled and shaking the EMF readers a bit. “They’re going bezerk, and then completely dead, in intervals.”

 

“ _Fascinating_.” Charles was practically bouncing now, as he almost always did when they got readings of this sort. Sometimes, it was just interference from older components of the houses they were in, but other times, it was precisely what they wanted it to be. “Is there any pattern to it?”

 

“It moves in sweeps.” Hank said, moving the machine from side to side in broad strokes to show what the meant. “Over here, off the charts. And, over here--”

 

“Nothing.” Charles said. “That gives us a direction to start in.”

 

“Alternately,” Erik cut in. “We _don’t._ Charles, I really don’t like how this feels.”

 

When Charles looked at him, he looked paler, like he’d suddenly gotten sick. Charles’ brow furrowed, and he almost considered calling off the whole thing and leaving. Erik rarely got like this, as much as he liked to naysay and complain about their escapades, and he looked very close to vomiting on his camera.

 

However, as it usually was, the siren call of discovery was too hard to resist, and Charles just shook his head. “I assure you, my friend, we’ll be fine.” He reassured him, reaching over and putting a gentle hand on Erik’s shoulder and squeezing. Erik gave a half twitch of a smile- a genuine one, unlike his usual shark-like grin- and sighed.

 

“I still don’t like it.” He murmured as Charles drew back, but he seemed to have relaxed somewhat, color flooding to his cheeks. If Charles hadn’t known him better, he’d say he was blushing, but it was probably just the lighting.

 

“Onwards, then!” He said, nodding in the direction of the readings and starting off, Hank at his side and everyone else following closely behind.

 

Though the house had been condemned, Charles had to admire the architecture that was left. Most everything, as they got further into the house, seemed to be in a perfect state, almost like it had been frozen in time. There were even flowers in a few vases down the hall, though Charles assumed they were plastic, a part of the house from the last people that owned it.

 

“This would have been a lovely home.” He hummed. “It’s beautiful.”

 

“If not for the murder thing, yeah.” Alex said. “I’d live here.”

 

“You’d live here _with_ the murder, dude, let’s be honest.” Sean snorted, checking a doorknob. “Everything’s locked up tight. It’s weird.”

 

“Some of these doors don’t even _have_ locks.” Raven noted, taking a closer look.

 

“Old hinges?” Darwin suggested. “Maybe they’re stuck.”

 

“There’s trace EMF on all of the handles.” Hank said, scanning one. “So, maybe not.”

 

“Let’s see if we can get one open, then.” Charles nudged him aside, grabbing the doorknob.

 

“For god’s sake, don’t _touch that!_ ” Erik hissed, almost dropping his camera as he surged forward to swat Charles’ hand away. He was a second too late, though, as the knob went suddenly hot, burning Charles hand. He yelped, jumping back and knocking into Erik, who grunted in surprise, but caught him with an arm.

 

“ _Well_ ,” Charles said, voice a few octaves higher-- because of the sudden warmth of Erik at his back or the shock, he wasn’t sure. “Not trying that again.”

 

“I _told you_.” Erik huffed, pushing him forward only to put down his camera and take his injured hand, turning it over so he could get a better look at it. “Are you alright?”

 

“Fine, I’m fine.” Charles said, waving him off with his free hand. “It was just a shock, is all.”

 

“It burned your hand.” Erik was almost growling, brow furrowing even more than usual. “Raven, hand me the kit.”

 

Raven said nothing, but went into the pack she was in charge of carrying and tossed him the small first aid kit. “Spooky shit.” She said solemnly, and marked the pad twice.

 

“The readings didn’t even fluctuate.” Hank said, voice full of wonder. “That’s amazing.”

 

Erik paused treating Charles’ hand to glare. “Can you stop for half a second?” he hissed. “Someone’s _hurt_ , and you’re talking about readings?”

 

“There’s wasn’t just a random power surge in a doorknob,” Hank shot back. “He was hurt by something- something paranormal, and something powerful.”

 

“Something that doesn’t want us here.” Erik countered. “Some _one_ that doesn’t want us here.”

 

“When have the people we look for _ever_ wanted us to be there?” Alex snorted. “This is the job, Erik, if you forgot somewhere along the way. We’ve been doing this for years, and we’re not going to stop now.”

 

“Not to mention that _I’m fine_.” Charles put in, just in case anyone was actually going to listen to him again. “We’ve had worse, we just need to keep moving. Not like we can walk out the front door anyway, hm?”

 

Erik looked like he was between throttling them all and being sick again. “We’re looking for an exit.” He said. “And as soon as we find it, we’re leaving.”

 

“Happy one-hundred, everyone.” Sean muttered, but as soon as Erik had finished wrapping a bandage around Charles’ hand, everyone was up and moving again.

 

Things were quiet until they reached the end of the hallway, when a door creaked open of it’s own accord. “You know,” Raven said slowly. “I think I’m just going to stop the horror movie cliché count here for the night.”

 

“In we go.” Charles said, but it was without his normal enthusiasm. Erik’s wariness must have rubbed off on him, or maybe it was just his injury, but suddenly, all of his instincts were telling him to run.

 

They filed through the door quietly, Alex and Darwin sweeping their cameras to get shots of the room and Erik keeping his planted firmly ahead, on Charles, as he always did. As Raven, bringing up the back this time, entered, the room was suddenly filled with light, presenting them with what seemed to be a study.

 

“I suppose this is where our Dr. Shaw used to do his paperwork.” Charles commented, moving towards the desk at the far end of the room and examining it. It, like everything else in the house, seemed like it was stuck in time. There was no dust covering the surface, though it was unlikely it had been used at all in recent years, and none of the papers that sat atop it had yellowed with age; it was as if the ink had only just dried.

 

“December nineteenth,” Charles read aloud, gesturing for Erik to come closer and get a shot of the book he read from. It was leatherbound, and small enough to fit into the palm of his hand. “I’ve just drawn up the plans for my final experiment. It will be lovely to have my dearest by my side for a last time before she leaves me. Perhaps I’ll give her a kiss as she goes, to remind her of the good times.” He frowned as he finished, the seemingly loving words sending a chill up his spine. “This… honestly, this couldn’t be Shaw’s journal, but I can’t think of what else it could be. It doesn’t look like it’s been out long enough to be from the eighteen hundreds, though.”

 

“It’s his.” Erik’s voice was hoarse, and when Charles looked, he’d paled again. “Just… trust me, it’s his.”

 

“You’re very suddenly converted.” Hank snorted.

 

Erik glared at him. “If I didn’t believe in ghosts, McCoy, I wouldn’t be here.”

 

“You two, would you please--” Charles didn’t get the chance to finish chastising them before the lights of the room flickered out, and only to be replaced by an eerie blue glow coming from nowhere in particular. The lights moved, discordant for a moment before they made a clear shape- a man, hovering just above the floor and searching the room with empty eyes. Charles had a brief thought of ‘ _my god, I hope we’re rolling’_. It wasn’t often they got glimpses of full spectres, and it was even less often that they were so clear and _real_. The ghost’s gaze fell on him, then, and chilled him to the bone. It was a feeling he was used to, in his line of work, but not quite in such an unnervingly consuming manner.

 

The man’s gaze moved on from Charles quick enough, flickering to Erik, who was still behind him. His blank eyes lingered on Erik for a long, dragging moment before he smiled-- if one could call that, the blood-curdling curl of lips a smile at all-- and let out what might have been a laugh. It came out warped, like someone had put it through a funhouse sound system in slow motion. ‘ _Oh, yes,’_ came a voice. Charles was sure the ghost was speaking, but his mouth was still stuck in the same grin as it had been before, unmoving. ‘ _You.’_

 

Charles wasn’t even sure if Erik was _breathing_ behind him, he was so still. A quick glance found his eyes wide and almost his whole body trembling, as if he was about to go into convulsions. His entire face had been drained of color, and his camera had been dropped to his side, forgotten. “No,” was the only word he said, and the syllable was so quiet that Charles almost couldn’t hear it, even with their proximity. “No, no.”

 

The ghost let out another warped laugh, and seemed like he was moving forward through the air. There was no steady float to it; he jolted from one place to another, like a glitching computer screen. Charles could feel himself paling, growing weaker and woozier as he got closer, but the ghost paid him no mind. His focus was entirely on Erik, who took a stumbling step back for every jump the ghost made forward.

 

Without warning, another light ripped through the air, this one bright and white like lightening. There was a higher pitched warped sound-- the ghost was screaming, perhaps-- as the bolt ripped through him, and quickly as he first appeared, he was banished, taking the white light with him.

 

There was a long silence in the wake, the only sound the heavy breathing of the group. “What,” Sean said in a falsetto, breaking the silence. “The _hell!_ What the hell!”

 

“A full apparition, with sentience.” Hank was in awe, unlike the rest of the group. “He _broke the equipment_ , the second he appeared, Charles--”

 

“What did he want with you?” Raven cut him off, turning on Erik. All the eyes in the room shifted to where he stood, backed nearly into a corner, only shaking slightly. To almost anyone else, he would have looked nearly recovered, but Charles knew him far too well to believe that. His terror was in his eyes, and in his hands, usually so steady, and now unable to stop trembling as the rest of his body stilled.

 

“What does a dead mad scientist want with anyone?” He shot back, voice full of borrowed brashness.

 

“That was _Shaw_?” Alex asked, eyes widening.

 

“Unless he had a twin,” Darwin said, picking up an photograph sitting on the desk. In it, a man identical to the ghost stood in front of a curtain, face drawn into a serious line. Beside him was a woman dressed in white, smiling, though not at all kindly.  

 

“So, he what? Wanted to experiment on Erik from the afterlife?” Raven’s brow furrowed. “Can he do that?”

 

“From the looks of it, he was a fully manifested elemental.” Charles said, finally getting control of his own voice. “He effected the environment, and could have possessed him at the very least. God knows if he could have managed something worse.”

 

“Worse than being possessed by a spirit?” Sean arched an eyebrow. “Is that possible?”

 

“Very,” Erik cut in. “And stop talking about me like I’m not here. He wanted me because he thought I was interesting, and because he’s not done with his work.”

 

“How could you know that?” Hank asked, squinting at Erik over his glasses.

 

“I just-- I do, alright?” Erik seemed agitated, gritting his teeth. 

“So, he wants to kill you.” Raven said. “Jesus _Christ_.”

 

“He wants to… well, essentially.” Erik conceded. “There’d be other stuff involved before the death part, but--”

 

“Why are you so casual about this?” Alex interjected. “Like, _dude_ , he probably wants to rip you limb from limb.”

 

Erik shrugged. “You get used to it.”

 

“This is the _first time_ this has happened, how can you--” Alex stopped mid-rant, eyes widening almost comically. It took everyone else a moment to catch on.

 

“This isn’t the first time, is it?” Raven accused, stepping forward. “What the _hell_ , Erik, how often have you--”

 

“It doesn’t matter, nothing’s ever come of it.” Erik waved her ire away, along with Charles’ concerned frown. “Don’t look at  me like I’m a hurt puppy, Xavier, I’m _fine_. I’ve obviously never been possessed, and nine times out of ten it isn’t even malicious. Spirits just… they like me, for some reason.”

 

Charles held Erik’s gaze for a moment, steadily; it seemed like he was holding something back, something that was probably important, but now was hardly the time to press. “We’ll discuss this later.” He decided, and Erik’s shoulders seemed to slump. “But we _will_ discuss it. I want to know everything, Erik-- you should have said something before.”

 

“I can’t believe we have our own ghost bait.” Sean whistled, looking Erik up. “Lehnsherr, way to hold back, man.”

 

“He isn’t _bait_ ,” Charles said and the same time Erik flipped Sean off, and just like that they were back to their normal dynamic. “We should be moving on. We need to find the source of the apparition’s power, and--”

 

“You _still_ want to stay!” Raven huffed. “Charles, you were hurt, Erik’s being stalked--”

 

“And, if _we_ don’t deal with Shaw, what do you think is going to happen the next time some teenagers come along trying to spend a night in the haunted house down the lane?” Charles said. “We have a duty to keep people safe, here, Raven, especially from something so powerful. We can stop him, and we’re going to.”

 

“He’s right.” Darwin said, hefting his camera back up on his shoulders. “We’ve taken on worse-- remember than possession in Washington?”

 

“That wasn’t the ghost’s fault, though.” Hank said. “The dude was just naturally a dick.”

 

“Yes, well, now it’s the ghost’s fault, and that makes it all the easier.” Charles said. “So, on we go.”

 

Reluctantly, they all filed out of the room and back into the hall. As soon as they did, the door they’d come through swung shut and all the other doors in the hall creaked open in tandem, producing an eerie, droning echo.

 

“I hate this _so_ much.” Sean groaned. “After this? Hiatus. Like, a month long hiatus where we Google search ‘world’s least haunted towns’ and go down the list one by one. And enjoy it.”

 

“Let’s try to find a library.” Darwin offered. “There may be old journals or house plans in there. A spirit like that has got to have strong tie somewhere, and if I were a gambling man, I’d say it was somewhere in what used to be his lab.”

 

“I’d like to know what the _other_ light was.” Hank said, fiddling with the broken equipment and sighing when it gave no sign of turning back on. “The white one, the one that banished Shaw.”

 

“A battling force.” Charles hummed. “Interesting. The soul of one of his experiments, perhaps, trapped in the house with him and trying to keep him from hurting anyone else.”

 

“Whatever or whoever it is, we can only hope that they’re  strong enough to keep him occupied while we look for his tie.” Raven said, pushing ahead. “Come on, we can’t look standing here.”

 

They started moving back down the hall the way they came, occasionally poking their heads into room as they went. Most of them seemed to be guest bedrooms, decorated in a Spartan manner. “That’s bedroom number five.” Alex remarked, frowning and tucking his camera under his arm for a moment. “Wonder when he’d have that many guests.”

 

“He probably invited people to come and see his work.” Charles said, running a hand through his hair. “Genius enjoys an audience.”

 

“You’d know, wouldn't you?” Erik huffed, but he sounded more endeared than he was annoyed.

 

Charles smiled at him and shrugged.“I’m just a people-person, I suppose.”

 

Erik actually laughed at that, genuine and loud, and that only made Charles’ smile widen. There were very few things he enjoyed hearing more than Erik’s laughter, which was an absurd thing to consider given their current situation, but he had never quite been able to turn off the feeling before, so he didn’t try now. He’d done a good job of curbing his absurd crush so far, and he’d continue to do so for probably the rest of his life.

 

“Are we keeping the ‘Charles and Erik are totally flirting’ tally still?” Sean stage whispered to Alex, barely audible. “Because, _point_.”

 

“I’ll mark it when we get back to the van.” Alex murmured back. “ _If_ we get back to the van.”

 

“Shut up, both of you.” Erik said, though his smile only flagged slightly. They’d come back to the entrance now, and a quick tug of the front door found it still locked. They took that as the sign it was and headed down to the house’s other wing, finding the library behind the second door.

 

The inside was another room lost in time, no dust settled on any of the wall-to-wall shelves that took up the room. Half of them seemed to be full of books, many with German names, all obviously scientific in nature. “Guess Shaw didn’t do much pleasure reading.” Raven muttered, running her fingers across the spines before moving to the other side of the room. These shelves were filled with identical book, none with titles on the spines.

 

“These are probably his journals,” Charles said, moving to take what looked like the last one off the shelf. “What we saw in the study, that was probably the one he was working on before he died.” He flicked open the cover of the book he held in his hands, and was instantly greeted with a wall of text in small, neat print. He read, and found nothing of interest to his cause, so he flipped through a bit more.

 

Midway through the journal, there was a diagram of a human body-- or, the components of a human body, dismembered and drawn apart. “This… Christ. This looks like the plans for one of his experiments.” he said, a lump forming in his throat. “He was trying to make a man with a skeleton made of metal, here.”

 

“His other journal mentioned a beloved, and a final experiment.” Erik said as he came up behind him, leaning over his shoulder to get a better look at the book. “See if there’s any mention of her, or of what that might’ve been.”

 

Charles nodded and flicked through, going back and forth through the pages, “There’s nothing here about a woman,” he said after a moment. “Or, not any woman by name, or a mention of a beloved. There’s a lot about his experiments here, though, even if none of them seem like a magnum opus.”

 

“So, dead end.” Sean announced, leaning back against the wall. “Shi--”

 

Before he could complete the explicative, the wall swung back from him and he squawked, falling back and sprawling on the ground.

 

“Not cool!” he squeaked, scrambling to sit up. “ _Totally_ not cool, why the _hell_ is this house a walking Scooby-Doo episode?”

 

“It could be Shaw again, trying to lead us.” Raven said warily, ignoring Sean’s outburst as she approached the entryway.

 

“Maybe,” Charles said, shelving the journal and moving to stand beside her. “But, we don’t have any better leads.”

 

Raven sighed, but didn’t protest. No one else did, either, though everyone seemed reluctant to move into the dark passageway. As they moved, white lights lit the sides of the tunnel where there would usually be torches. The light looked remarkably similar to the bolt that had struck through Shaw, which made it only slightly less concerning.

 

“I don’t think Shaw’s the one leading us to this.” Erik had suddenly appeared at Charles’ side, his voice low in the shorter man’s ear. Charles jumped and almost hit him in the chin before his presence registered as a non-threat, though the reassurance did nothing to still his pounding heart-- _that_ probably had something to do with the proximity.

 

“Nor do I.” Charles replied, gesturing at the lights on the walls. “But, for all we know, this could also be entirely his machinations. We know he’s powerful, but we can’t be sure how far that extends.”

 

Erik nodded in agreement and fell silent, but he didn’t pull back as they walked, his body heat seeping through to Charles’ back. Distantly, Charles wondered if he knew just what he was doing to him, and trying to give him a heart attack, but he quickly pushed the notion away. If Erik _knew_ how he felt, surely he wouldn’t tease him about it. In the course of their friendships, there was very little that Erik had ever kept from him, being a beacon for ghosts notwithstanding. If Erik knew, then Erik would have said, and if Erik had said, surely they wouldn’t be standing here right now, or definitely wouldn’t be standing so close, at best.

 

He cut off that depressing line of thought as they reached the end of the passageway. It didn’t end, as he’d thought, in Shaw’s lab, or any similar dungeon of horrors. The room they entered looked like something out of a winter palace, rich furs and silks making up every surface that wasn’t draped white glittering white crystals.

 

“I don’t think I’d ever trust myself to be in here.” Alex whistled, running his hands across the back of a chaise that was sitting in the center of the room, camera panning slowly. “This looks like the White Queen’s room at the fuckin’ Ritz.”

 

“Definitely don’t think this place belonged to Shaw.” Hank said, examining a vanity in the center of the room. “So--”

 

“To his beloved, then?” Raven asked.

 

_Yes._

 

Everyone froze at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, projected the same way Shaw’s had been.

 

“Guys--” Hank said, stumbling back from the vanity. Projected onto the surface of a mirror was the face of a woman, features clear and bright, pale as the room around her.

 

_Though, Sebastian has somewhat different definition of ‘love’ than the rest of us._

 

Erik stepped forward from the group, face once again drained of color and moving like he was being forced towards the image. The woman in the mirror smiled, though there was no warmth to it, as he sat in the small chair in front of the vanity.

 

_My, you’re the interesting sort, aren’t you?_

“What is your name?” Erik bit out, teeth gritted like he was in pain. Charles stepped forward, moving to pull him away, but he held up a hand to stop him. Faltering, Charles just stood by his side, resting a hand on Erik’s shoulder. The woman’s smile got more coy.

 

_Seems you have your own definition of love, too._

 

“What is your _name_?” Erik repeated. There was color in his cheeks now, which was better than before, but Charles was too flustered himself to appreciate it.

 

 _Emma,_ the woman said. _Emma Frost._

 

“Did Shaw kill you?” Erik didn’t bother tiptoeing around the subject, though it was a common rule in ghost hunting to try and avoid speaking about the deaths of the spirits one was trying to talk to. Emma didn’t seem to mind though, letting out a soft laugh. It wasn’t warped, as Shaw’s had been, just amused and echoing.

 

 _No, dear, I killed myself_. She spoke patiently, as if she were explaining the situation to a particularly unintelligent child. _And him as well. He did_ plan _on killing me, though._

 

“What does he want now?” Erik pressed on, hands tightening into fists at his side. Charles’ hand dropped instinctually to them, thumb brushing across the knuckles. The fists loosened, and to Charles’ surprise, Erik twined their fingers together.

 

 _I think you know_. Emma said.

 

“Me,” Erik said, as if it were a simple fact. Charles would have been surprised by his calmness, but he could feel the hand that was held in his shaking. “But, why?”

 

 _What you are fascinates him_. Emma replied, and you could hear the shrug in her voice. _He didn’t get to perform his final experiment, and now, he’s found calling._

 

“What do you mean _what he is_?” Raven asked, stepping forward. Emma’s gaze flicked to her, and she huffed.

 

 _It isn’t my job to tell you everything,_ she said. _And it’s most certainly not to tell you your friend’s life story. He’ll tell you in your own time._

 

The white light of the room flickered then, and Emma frowned. _That would be Sebastian,_ she sighed. She looked to Erik again, expression grim. _You can stop him_ , she said. _Find the lab._ As she spoke, a door at the end of the room swung open. _That should set you on the right path. I don’t know how much more I can assist you, the closer you get to him. Above ground, we’re equal in power, but in his lab… that’s his show._

 

“Thank you very much, Emma.” Charles said earnestly. She smiled at him kindly.

 

 _You have wonderful taste in men,_ she said, though he wasn’t sure if she meant him or Erik, and he had no chance to ask before she flickered from existence.

 

“I cannot _believe_ ,” Raven said, seething. “That a _ghost_ called you out on your flirting. A ghost who has been dead and sharing a house with a murderous mad scientist for three hundred years _called you out on your flirting_ instead of actually being helpful.”

 

“What did she mean by ‘what you are?’” Hank asked accusingly, stepping towards where Erik was still seated, holding onto Charles’ hand like a lifeline despite Raven’s rant.

 

“I don’t know.” Erik said, but it was obvious he was lying. Hank huffed, knowing as much.

 

“Bullshit. You’re putting all of us in danger, Lehnsherr, so you’d better get to talking before--”

 

“She also said,” Charles cut in, already tired of this. “That he would tell us in his own time, and I'm sure he will-- right, Erik?”

 

Erik was tense again, this time a few moments from jumping at Hank’s throat as he always did when the other pushed him too far, but he relaxed when Charles gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “Yes.” he said, seeming reluctant. “When this is all over. It’s… it’s a long story, hard to explain.”

 

“You can take your time, once this is done.” Charles said. Erik nodded and stood, but didn’t release Charles’ hand, even to get a better hold on his camera.

 

“Right,” he said. “Let’s go find Shaw.”

 

* * *

 

“This is totally going against, like, the one rule we have.” Sean said as they moved down the narrow passageway that Emma had opened for them.

 

“We have more than one rule,” Darwin said. “And, this situation is kind of throwing every rule out the window.”

 

“At least there are no Ouija boards.” Alex said with a half shrug. He sounded more chipper than anyone in their situation should be, and it maybe had something to do with how the passageway was barely wide enough for two people to walk side by side, and how Darwin was pressed into his side, their cameras sitting on their opposite shoulders. “Never had the reason to fuck around with Ouija boards.”

 

“Because we’re idiots, but we’re not suicidal idiots.” Raven snorted, somehow managing to shoulder ahead of them and up to Hank, who was studiously trying to get some component of their equipment working again, to no avail. Charles and Erik were leading the group, fingers still entwined. “Please, please tell me someone is getting them on camera.”

 

“On it.” Darwin and Alex said in tandem. Erik turned his head to shoot them a dirty look.

 

“We can hear you,” he said. “And none of this is making the final cut.”

 

“It’s going up _somewhere._ ” Alex argued. “The fans want to know, man.”

 

“The fans can fucking deal.” Erik said. “And write their theories, and be happy in that.”

 

Charles rolled his eyes. “Behave, Erik.” he said, but made no move to comment otherwise, or pull his hand away. Erik snorted, but said nothing more as they walked on.

 

The passageway started to broaden, finally ending in a large, circular room, smaller passageways branching off from that. “Scooby-fuckin’- _Doo_.” Sean groaned.  “Like, hand to god, this dude watched some cartoons or something in the afterlife, because this cannot be happening.

 

“If the next words out of your mouth are ‘looks like we’re going to have to split up’, Charles, so help me god--” Raven began. Charles shook his head.

 

“Is there any other way?” he asked, partially rhetorically.

 

“Yeah, uh _not splitting up in the house of a murderer_.” Raven replied, rolling her eyes. “Don’t be stupid.”

 

“I’m not being _stupid_ , I’m being practical. There are there passageways, leading god knows where, and there are seven of us. That’s two pairs and a group of three, it’s perfectly--”

 

“Do not say safe.” Now Erik was weighing in. “One rule, Charles, we have _one rule_.”

 

“Then what do we do, waste time doubling back and forth through them, that is, _if_ we don’t get lost the second we start moving, or run into Shaw.” It was odd to argue with Erik while he was holding hands with him, so he moved  to draw his hand away. Erik, however, took that as a challenge and held on tighter.

 

“We’re not splitting up.” He and Raven said at about the same time.

 

Charles made a frustrated noise.“Then _give me a better idea_.” he said.

 

They both opened their mouths to reply, but there was a rumbling sound, light around them went blue.

 

 _I think splitting up is a great idea._ Shaw’s warped voice whispers, and suddenly, the ground in shaking beneath them. There’s a cracking sound, and the stone floor begins to split.

 

“Holy shit!” Sean screeched, but it could barely be heard above the sound of the ground falling out from beneath them. Raven jumped back, Hank pulling her away from the growing chasm as Erik and Charles were stuck on the other side of it. Charles had a brief moment to think ‘ _my god, I hope someone’s getting this’_ before Erik was calling out “Charles!” and they were falling, Erik’s cry echoing as tumbled down, and away from the waning light above.

 

* * *

 

“Holy _shit_.” Sean’s voice was still an octave or two too higher as he slumped against the wall, head between his knees. “Holy shit, he just killed them!”

 

“We don’t know that!” Alex snapped, whipping towards him. “He said he wanted to split us up--”

 

“-- And, as morbid as it sounds,” Darwin cut in. “I don’t think just killing Erik is what he wants. He wants to… toy with him, so he cut him off from the rest of us.”

 

“Except for Charles.” Raven said, her voice coming out in sharp bites, laced with panic. “He took Charles, too, to… whatever it is that’s down there.”

 

“Then we have to find a way to get to them.” Hank said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “We… we go back the way we came, try and convene with Emma again.”

 

“And how do we do that?” Sean asked. He already hated where this was going.

 

Hank, for his part, didn’t look like he liked it either. “I think we’re going to have to break another rule.”

 

* * *

 

The first sensation that hit Charles when they finally reached the bottom was one of pain, quickly followed by relief that he was able to feel the pain, and finally, a deep, chilling fear. “Erik?” he called, sitting up best he could as his body screamed in protest. “Erik, are you alright?”

 

“I’m alive.” Erik’s voice was muffled, coming from somewhere below Charles, and… oh. Charles rocked back onto his knees and felt around, finding Erik’s face with his hands. “And you’re not as light as you look.”

 

“Yes, well, we all know looks can be deceiving.” Charles huffed, rolling entirely off Erik- or, trying to. He hit a wall in his attempt and let out an aborted noise of pain. Erik shifted under him, jolting up.

 

“Are you alright?” he asked. Charles sighed.

 

“Nothing’s broken, I think, but I’d rather not have to do that again.” he said. “Where are we?”

 

“No idea.” Erik said. “But, my guess is, exactly where Shaw wants us.”

 

The idea of playing directly into the man’s hands sent a chill down Charles’ spine. “Then we’ll have to find a way out.”

 

 _Quite impossible._ Shaw’s voice was there again, echoing from every corner. _Many have been exactly where you are, little hunter, and none have gotten out. Besides, it’s rude to leave a performance before the final curtain._ Shaw’s form flickered into existence across the room, the only light in the darkness. As he lurched forward, the lights moved up behind him, setting a gruesome scene; a lab like something out of a Frankenstein movie, organs in jars and medical tools littered about. _Your dearest Erik is going to be my final masterpiece, and I’m sure you’d want to see your lover do what he’s always been meant for._

 

“I’m not--” Erik tried to speak, but he sounded as if he were being choked. Shaw gave a garbled laugh.

 

 _Oh, but you are!_ he said, sounding delighted. _The perfect energy source. The dead, my darling boy, they love you, cling to you everywhere you go. A medium, a link between worlds._

 

Charles blinked slowly, turning to Erik in the darkness. “Erik--”

 

 _He didn’t know!_ Shaw seemed delighted, face twitching into the same bastardization of a grin as before. _He_ doesn’t _know, oh, my dear boy. You’re afraid he’ll see the dark in you, aren’t you? Afraid that this frail man won’t be able to look upon the power you hold._

 

“Shut up.” Erik gritted out. In the dim light, Charles could see he was clutching his head, eyes squeezed shut as if he could will Shaw from existence. “Shut up, shut up.” Shaw merely laughed again.

 

 _He won’t understand you, my boy, not as I do. The land of the living is not yours._ he cooed, as if he were a mother soothing a child.

 

Erik made a noise that was somewhere between distressed and hurt, and Shaw let out another laugh. _I’ve got some more… preparations to make, to ensure that we’re not interrupted._ he said. _But rest assured, we’ll be beginning soon. And then you and I, Erik, we’ll see the light together._

 

There was a flash of blue, and then Shaw was gone, taking with him the rest of the light in the room. It was silent, except for the sound of Erik’s breathing; he sounded like he was on the verge of hyperventilating.

 

“Erik,” Charles said, reaching forward. Erik jolted back.

 

“Don’t touch me.” he pushed out. “Don’t touch me, everything’s too---”

  
“Focus on my voice.” Charles tried again, shirking back as far as he could manage. “He’s gone, Erik, he’s gone--”

 

“Not for long.” Erik managed to huff, his voice muffled. If Charles had to guess, he’d say the he was hiding it in his hands. “He said he’d be back, and he’s going to be, my _God---_ ”

 

“What did he mean?” Charles asked. “He said ‘the world of the living isn’t for you’, Erik, what did he mean?”

 

“Exactly what he said.” Erik drew his head out of his hands. “I’m… I don’t want to say ‘not entirely human’, because I don’t _know_.”

 

“Just tell me what you do know, from the beginning.” Charles scooted closer again, reaching out and taking Erik’s hand. Erik took a deep, shaky breath.

 

“My mother died in a car accident, when I was young-- I’ve told you that much.” he said. “What I didn’t tell you was that, technically, so did I.”

 

“We were both killed on impact, but for… god, for some reason, I don’t know what, I came back, and when I did… I could see spirits everywhere, people wandering aimlessly, or crying, or just… staring. And, the second they knew I could see them, they started flocking to me like moths to light, screaming, talking, trying to get me to notice them and help them. And I tried, at first-- tried to help as many as I could, talk to them, but… I couldn’t help them all, and I couldn’t help them enough. Eventually, I just started to ignore them, and ignored what I would do… until I met you.”

 

“You were-- God, Charles. You’re _contagious_ , do you know that? You, and your drive, and your damned curiosity. You wanted to know what was out there, to open eyes and learn new things, and there was no way I could resist being a part of you, however small. The places we’ve visited, the thing’s we’ve seen… no one there is forgotten, because of you. You don’t know it, could never see it, but remembering is what puts a lot of these people to rest. _You_ do that, with your prodding and your babbling, and it’s _beautiful_.” Erik took a deep breath here, sounding close to tears. “I can’t help, even if I can see them, but you? You do amazing things, even without that.”

 

“Oh, _Erik_.” Charles isn’t sure what to say, or what to do other than surge forward and wrap his arms around his friend. “You’re a part of that too- and, a part of me, one of the best. What Shaw said, about seeing the dark in you, it isn’t true. I _see_ you, Erik, every day, and even clearer now, and I am not afraid of you. I’m in _awe_ of you, and have been since the day we met.”

 

Erik laughed, the sound still somewhat broken. “You’re an odd man, Charles Xavier.”

 

“I suppose you’re right.” Charles hummed, leaning forward a bit more, seeking out Erik’s face in the darkness to make sure he didn’t accidentally run into his chin in his next move. “But, I am one who cares for you quite deeply.”

 

“You--” Erik began to say something, but Charles didn’t let him finish, leaning in and kissing away any protests or defamations of character that may come. He didn’t hear so much as feel Erik’s gasp he returned the kiss, almost the entirety of him humming with energy and the rightness of the feeling.

 

The kiss ended almost as soon as it began, which was far too early, though both of them were out of breath by the time they pulled away. “You know,” Charles said, breaking the silence. “Everyone else was betting whether or not they’d be able to get our first kiss on camera. Apparently, it’d send our views through the roof.”

 

“I’m not here to put on a show.” Erik grumbled, though there was less bite to it than there normally would be. “They can have the third one.”

 

“And, why not the second?” Charles asked, amused. He could feel Erik’s grin.

 

“Because that one’s just ours.” he hummed and leaned in again. Charles knew, in the back of his mind-- and knew that Erik knew, too-- that Shaw would be back, and that when he came, he’d bring hell with him, but for now, he was content to forget that and lose himself in something he’d wanted for so long.

 

* * *

 

“Not to be, y’know, _Erik_ about this all,” Sean said, pacing nervously around the rest of the group as they sat in a circle on Emma’s pristine white carpet. “But this is literally the worst idea we’ve ever had.”

 

“Do you have one of your own you’d like to share with the class?” Raven snapped, looking up at him from where she was sitting. “Because, we have to get her to listen to us somehow.”

 

“Uh, okay, how about we write a note? Leave a cosmic voice mail, spin in a circle and say her name three times in the mirror, _anything that isn’t this._ ” Sean listed, eye wide. “Like, literally, this? This was the first rule, the original, the one Charles wrote and Alex glued with a piece of fucking _chewing gum_ to the inside of the van- _no fucking Ouija boards_.”

 

“And now, we have no other choice.” Hank said. “Charles and Erik, they could be dead, or dying, or being tortured, and we have no way of stopping them that doesn’t involve her, and she doesn't seem to be answering any other way.”

 

“Now, sit your ass down so we can get started.” Raven finished, grabbing Sean’s hand and yanking him into the circle. He looked to Darwin and Alex for support.

 

“You guys are down for this?” he asked. Darwin shook his head.

 

“Absolutely not.” he said, and Alex nodded in agreement. “But, what other way do we have?”

 

“Right.” Hank sighed, putting his hands onto the makeshift planchette they’d made. “So, we’re all in agreement that this is an awful idea, but the only way that this is going to work, so we can just--”

 

 _Oh, honestly_. There was a sudden sigh from behind them, and Sean had never been more relieved to see anything- except, maybe, the bathroom that one time in Minnesota- as he was to see Emma Frost’s face reflected in the surface of the vanity’s mirror once again.

 

“Lady,” he said scrambling to his feet. “I could kiss you.”

 

Emma made a face. _Please, don’t even try; I don’t need the smudges._

 

“Shaw has Charles and Erik.” Raven said, coming over to stand behind him. Emma gave what might have been a shrug.

 

 _I know, that was the point_.

 

Raven went from concerned to incensed in half a second. “That was _the point_?” she growled. “You mean you sent all of us to almost get _killed,_ so that you could hand my brother and one of my best friends over to your psychopathic boyfriend.”

 

Emma seemed nonplussed by Raven’s murderous rage, possibly because she was already dead, but also because Sean could imagine her killing people with her pinky finger when she was alive. _Yes, but not for the reason you think. I can’t get down to Shaw’s lab on my own- he’s at his most powerful there, and he keeps me out- but, I can if there’s something- some_ one _down there for me to latch on to. Your friend makes for the perfect anchor._

 

“So, you’re going to use Erik as a beacon?” Hank said, pushing forward. “And, then what?”

 

 _I’m going to finish what I started._ Emma said, her expression going dark. _I’m going to rid this world of Sebastian Shaw, once and for all._

 

* * *

 

Charles and Erik had lain together in silence for sometime before the lights began to flicker back on, heralding Shaw’s reappearance. Erik pushed as far from Charles as he would manage, probably hoping that the distance would make Shaw forget about Charles. It worked somewhat, because when the ghost flickered into appearance once more, he seemed entirely focussed on Erik.

 

 _Glad to see you haven’t tried to make your escape, my dear boy_. he said, sounding somewhat amused. Erik snorted, raising an eyebrow defiantly.

 

“Would there have been a point?” he asked.

 

Shaw laughed. _Not at all. This room has been sealed for decades; only I can get out, and only those invited can get in._ he said. _But, enough small talk--_ He raised an arm, and Erik was suddenly moving through the air, gasping for breath.

 

Charles surged forward on instinct, grabbing for him, but Shaw’s other arm moved, pushing him back and slamming him into the wall. He hit it with a cry of pain, and crumpled to the ground again. _Now now,_ Shaw’s laugh rang out in warped chuckles. _We can’t have any stage crashers. This is to be a wondrous scene; you should feel honored to witness it._

 

“Let him _go_.” Charles gritted out, clawing himself to a sitting position and starting forward again.

 

 _You simply don’t understand._ Shaw seemed as if he were sighing. _I’m doing your friend a favor; he belongs with me, and with all those who have breathed their lasts here. It’s poetic._ He dropped Erik from where he was suspended onto a table, leather bands strapping him into place of their own accord.

 

 _It used to be,_ Shaw hummed, nostalgic and moving towards the table. _That I would spend hours, drawing out my experiments cut by cut and inch by inch. I’ve no need for that now, really. I can make marvels in minutes- you should see what I’ve done to the insects around here. I’m like a God on earth._

 

“You’re a monster.” Erik managed to gasp out. Shaw laughed again.

 

 _No, no, you’ve got the story wrong._ he said, one hand moving to hover over Erik’s cheek in a mocking, ghostly caress. _I’m Frankenstein, and you? You’re going to be the monster, the poltergeist that haunts these halls and kills any who enter them. You’ll finally have free reign of the world you’ve seen your whole life._

 

A scalpel flew from the table closest to Charles and over to where Shaw hovered, cutting through the front part of Erik’s shirt with a flick of Shaw’s fingers. _I’ve always wondered what makes people like you tick._ He mused. _Emma, my darling Emma, she was somewhat like you- she could see auras, read people like books. She had lovely eyes, right up until the moment I tried to cut them from her head._ He frowned, then.   _Such a shame she didn’t appreciate my approach; tried to burn the whole place to the ground, only succeeded in killing the both of us._

 

“And it seems I’m going to have to do it again.” The words came from Erik’s mouth, but they were not spoken in his voice. Charles paled, moving towards the table as Shaw seemed to gape, shooting himself back a few steps.

 

 _You can’t be here._ he hissed, the entire room shaking with power. Erik rose from the table as much as his restraints could let him, and when Charles could finally see his face, his eyes were entirely white.

 

“Oh, it seems I can.” Emma Frost’s voice left Erik again, sounding entirely wrong. “All I needed was a vessel.”

 

 _I won’t let you ruin another masterpiece._ The room was crackling with Shaw’s power again. Erik’s eyes flashed, glowing for a moment.

 

“You can’t stop me.” Emma said simply, almost sounding smug. Erik’s head dropped back to the table for a moment before his whole body arched off of it, mouth falling open as a white smoke shot out of it. Charles had never witnessed an exorcism before, but he was suddenly sure that this was what it looked like.

 

Shaw let out an inhuman screech, jolting backwards as far as he could manage as the smoke morphed into an orb that hurtled his way. There was no indication of impact when the orb hit him for a long moment before tendrils began to snake out from it and work their way into his form. Shaw’s mouth fell open, and the sound that left it was something between the cry of a dying animal and the screeching of tires, but not quite anything so of this world. Charles covered his ears as he watched the white slowly overtake the blue of Shaw’s form.

 

Suddenly, the screeching stopped, and all the was left was a shining white light. The form flickered, and reformed into someone else entirely- a woman, the woman who had stood beside Shaw in the picture, and the woman they’d seen in the mirror. _Take him_ , she hissed. _And go. Without him, this room will crumble._

 

Charles didn’t need to be told twice; he scrambled to his feet, fumbling with Erik’s restraints as the other laid limp on the table. “Erik,” he hissed. “Erik, wake up, we have to go.”

 

“What did--” Erik blinked a few times, but didn’t finish his question. He allowed Charles to pull him to his feet and leaned heavily on him as they moved towards the end of the room. There was a ladder there leading to a trap door in the ceiling, and neither of them looked back as they moved up it and out of the room. The last thing Charles saw before he pulled himself out of the room was a burst of blue-white light as Emma’s form dissipated, taking Shaw with it.

 

He practically jumped the last few rungs into the room above them, pushing Erik away from the edge as the trap door slammed shut. They both laid there for a long moment, breathing hard, before Charles spoke.

 

“Are you alright?” he asked. Erik nodded, staring up at the ceiling.

 

“Not the first time I’ve been possessed, remember?” he said, and there was something about that statement combined with the adrenaline coursing through his veins that sent Charles over the edge into hysterical giggles. Erik joined in after a few seconds.

 

“We should find the others.” Charles managed to curb his laughter long enough to say. Erik nodded in agreement, pushing Charles off so he could stand and offering him a hand up.

 

In the only show of luck they’d had that night, it didn’t take them long to find the rest of the group. All they had to do was walk out of the room and down the hall, and Charles found himself with an armful of Raven, and cameras at him on every angle. “You’re alive.” Raven breathed. “Thank God, you’re alive.”

 

“With a bit of help, yes.” Charles mumbled into her hair. “Glad to see the rest of you made it out alright.”

 

“The only casualty tonight was Lehnsherr’s shirt, apparently.” Sean said. “Alex, get a shot of this, people are gonna love it.”

 

Charles rolled his eyes and let Raven go, pinning Sean with a look. “Back off, the man’s been through enough.”

 

“I need a nap.” Erik huffed, pushing past Alex and Darwin, who were both taking Sean’s advice. He paused only briefly to grab Charles’ hand and drag him along. “You’re going to be joining me.”

“Are you finally going to take him to bed?” Alex huffed, waggling his eyebrows and following, Darwin close behind.

 

“Not in the back of your boyfriend’s van, I’m not.” Erik snorted. Charles had just enough energy left to be embarrassed, but he was quickly coming to second Erik’s idea of rest.

 

“But, you are going to?” Darwin pressed.

 

Erik rolled his eyes.“Yes, eventually,” he huffed. “Are we leaving or not? I’d rather not spend the night somewhere I was just almost murdered.”

 

“What happened down there, really?” Hank asked.

 

“We’ll tell you later.” Charles said, cutting the ordeal short. “Really, there’s no way to summarize it, and I _would_ quite like that nap.”

 

“We want the _whole_ story, Charles.” Raven ordered  sternly. “And you,” she said, turning to Erik. “Still have some explaining to do.”

 

“Later.” Erik said. “All of it, we promise. Now can we _please_ leave?”

 

Raven nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer. “Yeah, let’s get out of here.”

 

They found their way back to the front of the mansion shortly thereafter, and much to their relief, the door swung open the moment Hank reached for the handle.

 

“And that, dear viewers,” Charles breathed, exhaustion hitting him in a wave as soon as he passed through the doors of the mansion and back out into the open air. “Concludes our hundredth episode. I believe a hiatus is going to be in order, after all of this-- Sean, you said something about a list of the world’s least haunted towns?”

 

“Already Googling.” Sean said, pulling out his phone.

 

Erik snorted. “Really, Charles, I never thought you a quitter.” He quipped, though there was no bite to it.

 

Charles smiled up at him. “Not quitting, just taking a break.” He said. “I think we could do with a vacation, possibly on a beach, somewhere romantic.”

 

“Beaches aren’t all that romantic.” Erik replied, though the smile on his face betrayed him in the end. Charles, finding himself suddenly unable to keep from doing so, leaned up to kiss it away. There was an audible gasp from behind them.

 

“Called it!” Raven crowed. “Episode one hundred, I _called it!_ Pay up, boys.”

 

“I told you there were bets.” Charles murmured against Erik’s lips.

 

Erik just laughed in reply. “Should we tell them it wasn’t the first one?” He asked.

 

Charles shook his head. “No, let them have their fun.”

 

They pulled away from each other then, fingers still laced together as they made their way to Darwin’s van, finally putting the mansion behind them.

 


End file.
